The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that up to 80% of blindness is avoidable and the result of diseases that can be prevented or treated to restore vision. The majority of blind people are over age 50. To address the problem, countries need national eye care plans that integrate ophthalmological services into primary care systems to ensure people have access to these services.

Data from prevalence surveys conducted by the Pan American Health Organization in nine (9) countries revealed that the marginal and poor populations are who have a higher prevalence of blindness and visual disability. The burden of visual impairment in Latin America and the Caribbean is not distributed uniformly; in many countries it is estimated that for every 1 million population 5,000 are blind, and 20,000 are visually impaired, at least two thirds are attributable to treatable conditions such as cataract, refractive errors, diabetic retinopathy, childhood blindness, glaucoma, onchocerciasis and trachoma.